Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday Pt 1
by waterenchantress11
Summary: Sokai- Kairi's grade goes on a class trip for winter break. How will the holidays be different from when in their native Hawaii? What does Sora have in store for Kairi? And will any of them survive a plane ride with Selphie? Merry Christmas!
1. Chapter 1

"_Homeroom B, please proceed to the auditorium."_

I slung my bag over my shoulder after I heard the blaring voice of our school secretary over the loudspeaker. I grabbed my paper and envelope and along with the rest of my homeroom was shepherded to the auditorium.

Once we arrived, each of us approached a table. My English teacher peered up at me from behind his thick glasses.

"Ah, Kairi, I see you're going on the class trip, too?"

"Yes, Mr. Hersh." I replied.

"Well then, have fun. But don't forget to complete your homework over break!"He smiled and took the envelope from my extended hand. In it was a check for the remainder of the money for our class's Christmas trip.

"Thanks," I said and headed off to class, meeting up with my friend on the way.

"Hey, Selphie!"

"Hey, Kairi! Oh my god, I can't wait for the Colorado trip! It's going to be so much fun!" Selphie squealed. "When we room together, we can order room service, and stay up until 2 in the morning, and watch Christmas movies, and play Truth or Dare…"

"Selphie," I laughed, "I do half of that with you at sleepovers here."

"Yeah, but it'll be so much more fun in Colorado!" Selphie giggled. "It'll be so cool…. I can't wait to see snow! I've never seen snow before!"

"I don't think any of us have," I said. "Hawaii isn't exactly a snowy place."

"Actually, you know, Cloud says he has! He used to live in the mainland somewhere. I think the East Coast…."

"Really? That's cool. I have to go, I'm at history. See you!" I replied.

"Later!" She called after me with a wave.

Two weeks later I stood in the airport, hugging my mom and dad goodbye. I joined the group of students from my grade clustered around a chaperone, and gave a final wave to my parents.

"AHHH!!" Screamed Selphie, jumping up and down. "We're finally going!" She ran over to me and gave me a huge bear hug, Selphie-style.

I laughed. "Calm down! I know you're excited, but chill…"

"I can't! I'm just too crazy!" She squealed, earning a "Shh" from our chaperone, who was now calling roll.

"Great, the plane ride should be fun," I whispered sarcastically with a roll of my eyes. "I'm not going to sit next to you. I feel bad for whoever has to."

When everyone was present we had to wait for a little, and then we boarded the plane. I opted to sit in an empty window seat. I stared at the runway while Selphie buzzed around, riling up her other friends.

"Hey," I looked up at Riku, who was loading his luggage into the overhead in front of me. Sora was behind him. He gave his bag to Riku, who rolled his eyes.

"This taken?" He pointed next to me. I shook my head.

"Called." He said, falling on the seat. Riku closed the overhead.

"What? Okay, you made me load your bag 'cause you're too weak and now you get seat dibs too?"

Sora shrugged and Riku rolled his eyes again, getting into the seat in front of us.

"Hey, Rikuuuuu," Selphie giggled, sitting on his lap. Riku shot an "Oh crap" look at me.

"Okay, who gave her the sugar? Kairi?"

I put my hands up in defense. "Riku, you know she gets this way off of, like, air."

Selphie plopped down onto the seat in front of Sora. "We get to sit next to each other, Riku! Isn't this going to be the best plane ride _ever_?"

"Yeah. The best." He covered his face in his hands. I laughed.

"I hate you guys," He murmured. "First, you make me load your bags, then you get dibs on seats, and now I'm stuck on a plane next to a sugar-high Selphie for God-knows-how-many hours." He groaned. "What kind of friends _are _you?"

"Sorry," I apologized. Although it was funny, I did sincerely feel bad for making him sit with Selphie. When she was acting like this she just spouted nonsense. I knew he wasn't going to get any sleep on this plane ride.

Our plane took off less than half an hour late, around 8:30 pm, Honolulu time. I'd come prepared with a pair of earplugs (plus some extras) and my iPod for the plane, because I knew it'd be loud and rambunctious with half a plane full of excited high school students.

"Can I have a pair of those?" Sora asked hopefully about an hour after we'd taken off. I'd just pulled my bag of earplugs from my carry-on.

"Yeah," I laughed, handing him a pair. He put them in his ears with a contented sigh.

"They work like a dream," He said, reclining his chair and wriggling under the thin airline blanket. I smiled and put in my own earplugs, flipping off the light above me.

"Night, Riku," I said.

"Doubt it," He muttered, rubbing his temples while Selphie chatted loudly with the girls in front of them. I giggled.

"Want earplugs?" I held up a spare pack.

"I don't think they're going to do much," He replied. "Anyway, you and So get some sleep. I'll need someone to help me through the jet lag for the first couple days."

"Okay. Night," I said. I opened the window next to me a crack, watching the night outside until I fell asleep.

Later on in the night, I woke up. It must have been at least 2 a.m., because only a few people on the plane were still awake. I squirmed in my seat for ten or so minutes, but I couldn't seem to get comfortable. Sora heard me moving—he's a light sleeper at the most inconvenient times—and he woke up, too.

"Oh, shit, did I wake you up? Sorry." I apologized.

He shrugged. "It's fine, I haven't been sleeping for much more than an hour at a time anyway."

"Ow," I said quietly. "I wish planes had, like, beds or something. I hate putting my head against the windows." He looked at me with a sleepy smile. He was getting close to passing out again.

"Tonight, you are my human pillow." I proclaimed after a moment of thought. I laid my head on his chest. He was warm and the rise and fall of his breathing was much more comforting than the coldness of the window. I fell asleep in mere minutes.

I woke what seemed like seconds later when an extremely excited Sora shook me.

"Kairi, we're almost there!" He exclaimed, eyes wide as saucers. I blinked in the light of the new day. "Look out the window!"

I mumbled a bit before squinting at the wide-open window my head had been resting against. It was bright outside, really bright, and it took my eyes a second to get adjusted. Once I could make out shapes, I sucked in an awed breath. Far below us sparkled a snow-dusted town. The mountains surrounding it vaguely reminded me of the volcanoes in Hawaii, with the exception of snowy peaks.

"We will be landing in 20 minutes," The pilot's voice said over the intercom. The finally-slumbering students began to buzz quietly as they woke up. The next 20 minutes gradually grew louder and by the time the plane was ready to land nearly everyone save a few stragglers was wide awake and ready to explore Colorado.

After we'd arrived and sorted out our luggage, the 70 some students from my class got onto a tour bus and we made our way to our hotel. Once in the parking lot, our chaperone gave us a brief speech about being safe, handed us a brochure of things to do, and gave us all our room keys. Everyone was so excited I don't think I've ever seen a bus unload that quickly. The brave chaperone nearly got trampled in all the chaos.

The teacher checked us into the hotel and we all ran off to our respective rooms. "Girls' rooms are on the right, boys on the left," She directed us. We'd been allowed to pick our own roommates but there were to be no shared rooms with the opposite gender.

"Wow," I breathed when we opened the door to Selphie's and my room. It was large for a hotel room. It was decorated with dark wood and red accents, matching warmly with beige walls. Selphie immediately dropped her luggage and began to jump on one of the two big beds.

"THIS IS SO AWESOME!!" She screeched. Her attention span was so short she couldn't focus on anything for more than a few seconds; her head turned constantly and her eyes flicked around the suite like a kid in a toy store. She stuffed one of the complimentary chocolates from the bedside table into her mouth and flung open the double doors leading to our balcony.

"Oh my god," She proclaimed, mouth full of candy. "Look at this view!"

I walked across the room to the balcony. It was certainly something to see; snow-covered peaks rose as far as the eye could see, dotted by the same evergreens that framed either side of the deck.

"Ooh! And the bathroom!" She exclaimed, not content to stay in one place for more than ten seconds. She skipped over and started to explore, sniffing the various trial hand creams and candles on the counter. I laughed and walked in, too. A deep tub and shower were at one end, while there were double sinks and cabinets with lots of storage space for various essentials—makeup, perfume, hair products, et cetera-- completed the room.

I began to unpack while Selphie flitted around. I looked at the clock—it read nearly one. My stomach growled. The last meal I'd had was a long time ago—I'd slept right through breakfast on the plane. My stomach growled, reminding me to ask Sora later why he hadn't woken me up for food.

I went over to the door when I heard a knock.

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Us. Can we come in?" Riku replied.

I opened the door a crack. "You might not want to, Selphie's in here."

Riku put his face in his hands. "After last night, I think I can manage five minutes with her." I opened the door wide and they walked in. Sora plopped down on the edge of my bed and started to read a brochure while Riku flipped on the TV.

"I just have to take a quick shower and change and then I'll be ready," I said. They nodded and I grabbed a change of clothes, going into the bathroom and getting into the shower.

Five minutes later, I emerged from the steamy bathroom feeling rejuvenated and clean for the first time since the long plane ride. I combed my damp hair and slipped on a pair of shoes.

"Ready," I said, and the boys got up off the bed. I grabbed my purse and stuffed some money and my cell phone into it, and we headed out the door.

We made our way to the first restaurant we saw, a little French café on the corner of two of the town's main streets. It was bustling, pleasantly filled with people. When I looked at the menu my stomach rumbled.

"Anyone else hungry?" I said, setting down my menu once I'd decided.

"Yeah, starving!" Sora chirped.

"Sora. You _had _breakfast this morning. Kairi hasn't eaten a meal since we left Honolulu." Riku scoffed.

"So? I'm still huuuungry," He moaned dramatically. I rolled my eyes.

The waitress took our orders and thankfully, despite the restaurant being filled to capacity, the service was great and we got our food very quickly.

"Mmmm," I murmured as I finished my crepes. "I love food." The boys laughed and once we were finished we left our money and tip on the table and headed outside for some air.

"It's so clear up here," I sighed, hands in my pockets. "And it's cold! It's weird to be so cold."

"Your cheeks are red," Sora commented, breathing a huff of air and giggling.

"Woah! I can see my breath!" He said, making funny faces as he exhaled. Riku and I exchanged amused glances while an entertained Sora walked backwards a few steps ahead of us.

"So, what do you guys want to do today?" Riku asked, snapping Sora out of his fascination with the air.

"Ummm, I dunno," He said, and then looked at me. "Oh! Kai, give me your bag for a second."

"No, Sora, you can't use my lip gloss again," I joked, throwing the pocketbook to him nonetheless. Sora threw me a dirty look as he rooted around in my handbag.

"Again?" Riku asked bemusedly, raising an eyebrow.

"Tell you later," I laughed.

"Okay, calendar of events…." Sora thought aloud, finger trailing along a brochure labeled _Veil, CO: Your Official Guide_.

"Well, there's nothing special going on today, but there is a Christmas market that's been going on for a while. Wanna check it out?"

"Sure," I said. We walked downtown and explored the open-air market Everything felt so different from Hawaii. Instead of the scent of flowers, the spicy smell of pine trees filled my nose.

We walked around town until the evening. When the sun began to set we headed back to the hotel for dinner in the dining room with the other students.

The next two days passed much like the first, with Sora, Riku and I (sometimes graced with the presence of the ever-busy Selphie and her gaggle of friends) finding things to do in the quaint town of Veil.

"We have a very special excursion planned for today," Our chaperone said at the morning meal the third day in. "In about an hour, after everyone's done breakfast, we're all going to get on the bus and have dog-sled tours!"

Selphie looked at me with a huge smile, which I returned. She loved animals, and she'd been waiting for this for practically the whole trip.

"And, since tonight is Christmas Eve, we're going to have dinner a little early so everyone can have their own festivities. Now, as an early Christmas present, I've talked to the overseers of this trip, and they are allowing you all to room with whoever you want for the rest of our time here. Mixed-gender rooms will be permitted." Before she had finished her sentence, the low buzzing of the students had turned into excited chattering.

"Now," The teacher said, "This is a special privilege, and I expect for there to be no problems. Also, there are some basic ground rules: No more than five people to a room, and no less than two. No one is to be left out. Clear?" Some nodded half-heartedly. Most had stopped listening a while ago and were excitedly planning Christmas celebrations with their friends. The chaperone left us to eat our food.

Afterwards, we got on the bus and headed about 15 minutes out of town. We pulled up to a complex of log buildings. Everyone packed gratefully into the heated main cabin. A man explained to us the basics of sledding.

"So, for a recap, don't freak the dogs out, stay still, and only two people per sled. Got it?" We all nodded. "Oh, and try to have some fun while you're it!" He gave a deep loud laugh.

"The ride's two hours long. We go about 6 miles. We stop halfway through to have a short snack, and then it's back to the trail. So go on out, we have all the sleds lined up out front. Go and say hello to your musher, get to know the dos a little, and we're off in five." The giant blob of people made its way outside.

Sora walked casually up to me. "Hey, Kairi. Mind if we ride together?"

"'Course not," I said. We went over to a sled and started talking to the musher, who introduced herself as Deborah.

"And that's Snowflake, Louie, Hulk, Marie, Gina, and Rick," She said, pointing to the six dogs leading our sled. We walked over and the dogs licked our faces generously in a form of hello.

"All right, time to start," Deborah said a few minutes later. "Out of the two of you, which one's the lightest?" Sora and I looked at each other.

"It's close, but probably me," I said.

"Alright, little lady, well you can get in first, and you can sit behind her," She instructed us. I clambered into the front of the small sled, and Sora got in behind me. Deborah hopped on behind us on the planks of wood coming off the back of the sled. She called the dogs to attention before yelling "Mush!", and we were off.

"So, I heard you folks are from Hawaii?" Deborah asked a few minutes into the ride.

"Yeah," Sora answered.

"Y'all ever seen dogs like this? Or snow?" She questioned in a thick accent.

"No, never," I admitted. "It's strange."

We talked for a little while. About half an hour in, the sleigh jerked forward, startling us. I braced myself against the woven sides of the sleigh, and I felt Sora, having nothing else to hold on to to keep him from falling off the sled, wrap his arms around my waist for support.

"Sorry 'bout that," Deborah apologized. "Snowflake! Pay attention!" She yelled to the dog. The husky whined a bit.

Around half an hour later, we slowed to a stop. Sora and I got off the sled and stretched.

"Ah, that feels good," I said, shaking out my legs. I was slightly numb from a combination of the cold and sitting in one position for so long.

Deborah took the cap off a thermos, producing three small ceramic cups from a bag attached to the sled.

"Anyone want cocoa?" She asked, and the two of us nodded eagerly, making her laugh.

Sora and I drank gratefully, feeling our systems warm up with the beverage. My teeth were chattering, and Sora was shivering a lot. Deborah seemed not to be affected.

"Aren't you c-c-c-cold?" I asked her, my teeth distorting my words.

She chuckled. "I lived here all my life, missy. I'm used to the weather. This isn't bad for late December 'round these parts." She half-smiled "It ain't even snowing. Supposed to tonight, though."

I felt a shiver go through my body. How could anyone get used to this? It was freezing!

"Come on, maybe getting back on the sled will help," She said, and we finished our hot chocolate and got on again. I shivered, and Sora wrapped his arms around my shoulders, which helped a little.

"Look over there," Deborah pointed to our right side. We came upon an area where the forest ended, and we watched a panoramic vista of snow-capped mountains unfold in front of us.

"Wow," I breathed, and Sora took a long breath.

"It's so pretty," He sighed. I laughed internally.

Too soon the sleigh ride came to an end. We pulled up to the cabin once again, where most of the class was already waiting.

"Well, it was nice meeting y'all." Deborah said, stepping off the sleigh and allowing us to get out. Sora helped me up.

"You too," We smiled in unison, shaking hands with her.

"Thank you so much. Bye!" We said, starting to walk off.

"Oh, and kids?" She said. The two of us turned around in perfect synchronization.

She smiled a big smile, wrinkles creasing her rosy face. "Have yourselves a merry 'lil Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," Sora said, and we headed to meet Riku by the bus.

After sledding, I dropped by the convenience store in town and bought a few packs of white Christmas lights. A few hours later, I had just finished hanging all of them up around the hotel room. I plugged the last string into the power strip and turned the light of the room off before turning the strands on. I smiled at my work. Combined with the Christmas lights from the deck, the whole room sparkled with a dim glow.

"Perfect," I whispered. I changed into my nice clothes for dinner--- a dress that my mom had made me bring— straightened my hair, put on some makeup and headed to the dining room.

"Hey," I said to Riku and Sora, both in white button-downs and slacks. They greeted me and we claimed a table, joined soon afterwards by a glammed-up Selphie—wearing a sparkly gold dress and heels.

Dinner was long and fun; everyone had a lighthearted air. There was lots of laughter and delicious food, and by the end of the meal it was nearly eight o' clock. Everyone started to slowly migrate out of the dining hall and say their goodnights to each other before they returned to their rooms with their friends.

"I decorated," I said to Riku and Sora as they entered the room. I smiled as Sora's eyes got wide at the many strands of lights.

"Like it?" I asked. They nodded.

We flipped on the TV and started watching a Christmas movie whose name I couldn't remember. After the movie was over I was already starting to get tired.

After a while, we changed into our pajamas and settled into bed. We talked until we were almost asleep. When our eyes were drooping, I turned off the TV and fell onto my pillow.

"I think it's time for bed, guys," I said, a large yawn interrupting my sentence.

"Good idea," Riku said, flipping the switch on the lamp on the bedside table. We quickly fell unconscious. The last thing I remember was hearing Sora's voice, talking to Riku.

My eyes flicked open some time later. It was quiet and dark save for the Christmas lights hung over the room. I looked at Sora and Riku. Both were sleeping soundly. I noticed the clock on the bureau. It read 12:21 am. I sighed, flipped over in bed, trying to make myself comfortable. It didn't help that Sora had hogged most of the covers. I rolled my eyes and stared out the door to the balcony. It was snowing outside! I smiled hugely and carefully got out of the bed. I tiptoed to the doors and went outside, shivering a little at the change in temperature. I stuck my hand out, and smiled more when I examined the little flakes of frozen water melting on my hand. I caught some in my sleeve and laughed when they stuck in my hair. One landed on my nose, making me go cross-eyed trying to study it.

I heard the door open and close behind me. I looked over my shoulder, to see a smiling Sora standing behind me.

"It's snowing," He whispered, as if not to disturb the quiet of the surroundings.

"Yeah," I breathed. He held his arm out and caught some snowflakes on his pajama sleeve, examining them.

"Ehhhhh," I said, sticking my tongue out to catch a snowflake. He chuckled, but did the same.

"Got un!" I said, giggling when I felt a little droplet of water in my mouth. Our breath came out visible in the cold air.

"No fair!" He said, laughing. He danced around, trying to catch snowflakes moving away on the wind. I smiled at his antics.

"Merry Christmas," I said quietly.

"Oh, yeah. It's past midnight. Merry Christmas, then," He said, the usual Sora smile crossing his face. We stood for a few minutes with heads tilted towards the sky, silently watching the snowflakes flutter down.

"We should probably go back in," I said, rubbing my shoulders to warm up a bit. We went back inside as quietly as possible, so as not to wake Riku, who was always irritable in the morning, much less the middle of the night. Sora and I laid back down in the bed and talked for a while until we fell back asleep.

The next morning, I was awoken by Riku tapping on my shoulder.

"Please, please, _please_ Kairi, can I have permission to kill Selphie?" He said, anger dripping from his voice and sleep dripping from his eyelids.

"Wh-what's she doing now?" I questioned, rubbing my eyes at the light of the morning.

"She came in here, put her iPod in my ear on full volume, and then _blasted_ Christmas music," He moaned.

"Ouch," I said. "Sorry, but no. No matter how annoying she can get sometimes, she is still my friend. And Christmas is about forgiveness."

"Christmas is about presents, God damn it," Riku muttered. "Not about forgiveness." He'd already walked around to his bed and begun making it. Sora stirred next to me.

"Mornin'." He said, stretching his arms above his head with a sigh.

"Merry Christmas," I said with a smile, remembering the snow last night.

He smiled too. "Merry Christmas."

We got dressed in comfy clothing and headed to breakfast. It was the best French toast I'd had in a while, and I even remembered to keep the powdered sugar away from Selphie. I loved the girl, but no one here needed her more hyped up than she already was purely on Christmas spirit.

Afterwards, once Riku's foul morning mood had dissipated, we decided to exchange gifts. I jumped up from the bed we'd been sitting on and rummaged underneath it, finally producing two neatly wrapped presents.

"Here you go," I said, handing them each a present.

Riku opened his, revealing a pair of Nikes he'd been wanting forever, and I got Sora a cool wallet and a comfy sweatshirt.

"Here's yours," Sora said, producing a blue velvet box from nowhere. It was small, fitting in the palm of his hand. I took it slowly.

"Riku and I chipped in," He said. "Sorry we couldn't wrap it. We did our best but it just looked ridiculous."

I opened it, and inside a pair of diamond earrings caught the light and sparkled brilliantly.

"Guys," I said, hugging them both in turn. "Thank you so much. Really." I took out the earrings I was wearing and put the new pair in, admiring my new jewelry in the mirror.

We headed out into town, receiving many "Merry Christmas"-es from locals and tourists alike. We grabbed some fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies from a bakery and were walking down the sidewalk, admiring the Christmas displays in the stores and the cheery faces of everyone around us.

I rubbed my hands together and breathed into them. I'd always been known to run a little cold, and my forgetting my gloves didn't help much.

"Are you cold?" Sora asked. I shrugged.

"Just my hands," I said. He pressed his palm against mine. I sighed a little.

"God, Sora, how are you always so hot?" I asked. His rosy cheeks got a little pinker.

"Er—well, you know what I mean," I stammered a bit.


	2. Chapter 2

Time passed much too quickly, and before I knew it I found myself in front of a mirror, preparing for our New Year's Eve and farewell dance.

"Hey Selph, hand me mascara, would you?" I asked. She finished the wing on her liquid liner and passed me my makeup.

"Getting' prettied up for Sora?" Selphie asked, resuming her application of eyeliner. I did a bit of a double take.

"Uh, what?" I asked, not sure if I'd heard her right. She rolled her eyes and looked at me while I began to heat up my curling iron.

"What?" I asked again.

"C'mon, Kai, let's be serious. It's obvious he likes you."

I laughed. "Selphie, we're best friends. It's not possible."

She gave me a deadpan look. "Kairi, it's possible, and it's true. Just because you've been best friends since kindergarten doesn't mean you can't like each other! Besides, if you became friends with him in the first place, you had to be attracted to him somehow. Even if at the time it wasn't romatically."

I processed her words. True, he did have a cut e smile and all… but I don't know. I tried to push the thought of Sora and I—_together, _dating-- into the back of my mind. Finally I shrugged, grabbing a section of my hair and wrapping it around the barrel of the curling iron. "I dunno, Selph, I just can't see it happening."

"Kairi, I bet you ten dollars that by the end of tonight he will have made a move, or at least chickened out of it."

I paused. "Deal. But why do you think tonight?"

She shrugged, a mischievous smile playing across her face. "I have my sources."

After we finished getting ready, the two of us headed to the ballroom of the hotel, which had been reserved especially for our class. About half the people were there, and the rest were currently arriving in a steady stream. I talked with some friends until Sora and Riku came in, sporting similar combinations of sports jackets, shirts and slacks. They greeted us in the usual fashion. Despite his attire, Riku's mood was casual, but Sora was seemed… fidgety.

"Chill out, So," Riku said during our conversation. He elbowed Sora. "It's New Year's Eve, for heaven's sake. No need to be nervous." Sora nodded a little but didn't seem convinced. I wasn't really sure what they were talking about, so I just smiled a little.

Later on after talking to some of my other friends, I spotted Riku. I walked over to him, the smile on my face turning into minor confusion.

"Hey 's Sora?" They stuck together 99% of the time at parties, so it was a surprise not to see Sora with him.

Riku rubbed his face with his hand and made a face. "Out there," He said, pointing to the French doors leading out to the balcony of the ballroom. I started to make my way over.

"Kairi, help him out." Riku said. I frowned a little, not knowing what he meant, but nodded.

It was bitterly cold outside. Sora was the only one on the balcony. I shivered, my sleeveless dress not giving me much protection from the icy wind.

"Hey, aren't you cold?" I asked, walking up to the balcony railing. He jumped a little.

"Oh, Kairi, it's you." He said, sounding equal parts relieved and uneasy at the same time.

There was a short silence for a few seconds. It was obvious he wasn't going to say anything else.

"Sora, are you okay? You've been acting weird tonight." I though back to Selphie's words earlier, but tried to clear the thought from my head.

He paused before answering me, as if thinking over his answer. "Uh, yeah. I'm fine." He managed a small smile. "Thanks for asking."

I made a face, not really believing him. "Uh, Sora, Riku told me to help you? Do you need help with something?"

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Selphie was talking to me tonight, and she said that, uh, her 'sources' had told her…. You were going to try and make a move on me?" I laughed a bit to ward off the tension.

He blushed bright red. "Dammit, Riku…." He muttered, clenching his teeth. I waited for further elaboration upon the subject.

"Um, it's just that…" He took a deep breath, eyes closed for a moment. "Well, I really like you, Kairi."

"Oh. Um, wow." I said, startled. I didn't have much to say. He was blushing furiously.

"To tell you the truth, Sora…" I started. He turned to me with immense hope in his innocent eyes.

"I've never really thought about it, but you know, I kinda like you too." I smiled. "We can give it a try…"

That was all the answer he needed. He smiled the biggest smile I'd seen before, with a light blush on his cheeks, he planted a soft kiss on my lips. I giggled like a little girl and blushed a lot. He took my hand, staring into my eyes. I kissed him on the cheek once as I heard Auld Lang Syne play in the ballroom. Suddenly a rush of kids surged out onto the porch and I heard a loud crack. Sora and I turned in unison to the sky, where fireworks were being set off. He gave me a huge smile, which I returned. I heard people cheering and noisemakers as the clock struck midnight.

"Happy New Year, Kairi!" He yelled over the crowd, the signature smile never leaving his face.

"Happy New Year!"

A new year, a new beginning. It was a New Year's Eve to remember.


End file.
